Architectural survey planned for east downtown buildings

COLUMBIA — Consultants for the city Planning and Development Department will present plans for an architectural and historical survey of buildings in east downtown at a public meeting Wednesday night.

The area covered by the survey is bound to the north by Locust Street, to the south by University Avenue, to the west by south Ninth Street and to the east by south College Avenue. The consultants will review properties that are more than 50 years old.

Ruth Keenoy and Teri Foley, a consulting team based in St. Louis, will tour the area and examine each qualifying structure's architectural characteristics, city planner Scott Hanson said. They will also take black-and-white photos of the 60 structures being surveyed.

The consultants will only be surveying the houses' exteriors, Hanson said. They will also research the historical significance of some of the structures.

The survey will establish whether the area in question, or structures in it, are eligible to be included in the National Register of Historic Places. Hanson said residents typically lead the effort to apply for a spot on the register.

"Once all the documentation is complete, we hope there will be an interested party to help move that forward," he said.

Hanson said the consultants will also hold a public meeting to review the results after the survey is complete.

The survey will cost $9,500 overall. The State Historic Preservation Office is covering 60 percent of the cost and the city will cover the remaining 40 percent.

The meeting Wednesday night is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be in the Friends Room at the Columbia Public Library.